Overview

• UKHSA data show 18.6% of children who turned five between April 2024 and March 2025 did not receive the four‑in‑one pre‑school booster for polio, whooping cough, tetanus and diphtheria.
• The UKHSA and NHS are urging families to review vaccination records and arrange catch‑up appointments with GP practices, with Health Minister Stephen Kinnock stressing steps to make access easier.
• UKHSA immunisation lead Dr Mary Ramsay warned that many pupils will start school without full protection and called measles the “canary in the coalmine” that signals the need for urgent action.
• Coverage varies widely across England, with London recording the lowest rates and areas such as Cumbria (94.3%), Durham and East Riding (93.7%), Barnsley (92.8%) and Northumberland (92.3%) outpacing the England average of 81.4%.
• Southampton reports rising uptake—86.7% with two MMR doses, 86.2% with the four‑in‑one booster and 94.1% with the six‑in‑one vaccine—yet rates remain below the WHO’s 95% target, and the NHS plans to add a free two‑dose chickenpox vaccine from January 2026 with a catch‑up for slightly older children.